AJIZA MAGNO grew up in Dili, East Timor. As a student activist in the
East Timor resistance movement, she initiated the formation of the Lorosa’e
Women’s Forum for Peace (FORELSAN), which focused on the issue of
military violence against women. Ajiza and her family barely escaped
murder during the violence that followed the August 1999 independence
referendum.

The Successes and Failures of UN Intervention in East Timor

INTERVIEW WITH AJIZA MAGNO*

* Agatha Shmaedick acted as interpreter for this interview.

HUMAN RIGHTS DIALOGUE: Did the people of East Timor want humanitarian
intervention? AJIZA MAGNO: Yes. The International Force for East Timor (INTERFET),
which was sent into East Timor in September 1999, and the ensuing
peace-keeping mission were very much needed. It is really important that
INTERFET came in when it did because it created instantaneous security.
Without this protection, any misstep by the local guerrilla movement that
had been defending the East Timorese—the Armed Forces of National
Liberation of East Timor (FALINTIL)—might have resulted in a lot more
deaths.

During the violence that followed the referendum in August 1999,
FALINTIL’s hands were really tied. Their imprisoned commander, Xanana
Gusmao, had ordered them not to attack any Indonesian troops or militias—
instead, they had to hide themselves or they would have been killed. Thus,
the intervention brought a measure of safety that was really needed. In
addition, the peacekeeping force was an important factor in keeping East
Timor free of Indonesian military presence. Now most of East Timor is
safe, though the refugee and border situation is still quite bad. But it
would have been better to have something like INTERFET in East Timor
earlier—before the elections. Even before the escalation of hostilities
following the referendum, there were a lot of people hiding in the
mountains, a lot of people who were very afraid.

DIALOGUE: Did people in East Timor expect or hope for an earlier
intervention?

MAGNO: It was apparent from the May 1999 agreement with the United
Nations that Indonesia was going to have complete control of security in
the region. This was a huge disappointment for the East Timorese. People
began to voice their concerns at that point, saying that they did not
trust the Indonesian police or military and that they were very afraid.
Their fears were quickly realized. Intimidation steadily increased as the
election approached. People did ask the United Nations to send
peacekeepers and even demanded that it send a force to protect them.
However, it was not until after the violence started— when there were a
large number of UN people that had to be evacuated— that the United
Nations finally sent INTERFET. I wonder if the United Nations would have
sent in the force had foreigners not been in danger.

DIALOGUE: Do people in East Timor believe the actions of the
international community are motivated by human rights concerns?

MAGNO: It may be called a humanitarian intervention, but if the United
Nations really cared about human rights, it would be doing more right now
to prosecute people responsible for human rights violations. Every time
you talk about an international tribunal with someone who works for the
United Nations in East Timor they say, “Well, you know, it takes a lot
of money, it takes a lot of time, and it would be a huge hassle.” Though
the people of East Timor say they want justice, the United Nations is very
reluctant to undertake the task.

The United Nations presence in East Timor is almost like the sovereign
government of a country. It has never had so much power in one country. In
a way, this is like a great experiment for the United Nations—it often
seems like a way to build up people’s CVs rather than a way to do
something for the East Timorese. I don’t know what all the different
motives of UN workers are, but human rights do not seem to be a top
priority.

It also seems like the United Nations is a lot more willing to pay for
other things: arms, more training for a local military, and bringing in
more troops. In my opinion, there are already too many troops in East
Timor. They cover the whole country, when they are really only needed
along the border. The local guerrillas—who had been the people’s
protectors for a long time—are not being given the power to guard their
own country, even though that would be economically a lot more feasible
than importing troops. The United Nations is willing to spend whatever it
takes for security but not for human rights and justice.

DIALOGUE: How has the international presence affected the human rights
situation in East Timor?

MAGNO: The greatest problem right now, and the greatest violation of
rights, involves the right of the East Timorese people to help reconstruct
their country and to have decision-making power in this process. All
legislative and decision-making power is currently in the hands of the
UN-appointed transitional administrator, Sergio de Mello. This quashes the
voice of the East Timorese and limits their civil right to participation
in the political process. Even those East Timorese who are brought into
the UN system as part of the national council are appointed rather than
elected, and the consultative process for their appointment has never
really been explained to people in the villages. It may appear to the
United Nations that they are setting up a system in which the East
Timorese have a voice, but the people have never been told how to use that
voice.

The bureaucracy is opaque and confusing. As a result, the United
Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET) has very
different priorities from those of the East Timorese. It has not built
much-needed roads and local markets, but rather channels resources and
money into building hotels for foreign visitors and supermarkets that sell
imported foods to foreigners. Nor has the United Nations given priority to
the creation of badly needed labor standards. UNTAET originally said it
would adopt Indonesian law except where it contradicted international law.
Because Indonesian labor law was changing at the time, UNTAET then said it
would develop its own labor regulations. It has yet to do this, leaving
East Timor with neither labor laws nor regulations. UNTAET is also
developing regulations concerning land use that may allow the unlimited
sale of land to foreigners. With times so hard now, East Timorese may be
tempted to sell land, thus putting the best property into the hands of
foreigners.

The United Nations is now trying to bring many of the refugees back
from West Timor. In so doing, they are negotiating with the militia
leaders who control the refugee camps. We do not want them to make deals
for immunity with these leaders, many of whom have committed crimes in
East Timor.

DIALOGUE: How has the intervention and international presence affected
people’s perceptions of human rights and the international human rights
community?

MAGNO: The East Timorese have been researching human rights and
democracy in their various community groups for a long time now, since
before the Indonesian invasion in 1975. They hold a strong belief in human
rights and realize that those rights have not yet been established in East
Timor—as they have not yet been established in many countries around the
world. The people recognize that this inability to have their voice heard
in their own country and to be in any position of power in their own
government is a violation of their human rights. That does not mean,
however, that they have given up on human rights. Their cynicism is
directed at the UN bureaucracy. So far, this attitude has not had a
negative impact on local human rights organizations, though we are
concerned about this happening in the future. I think local groups have
avoided the trap of cynicism because they have been so vocal in pointing
the finger of blame at the United Nations, saying, “You’re not
recognizing our civil rights or being advocates for the people.”

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